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House Arainai
House ArainaiDragon Age: The World of Thedas Volume 2, p. 96 is a House affiliated with the Antivan Crows. Involvement Early in the Dragon Age, House Arainai was First Talon of the Antivan Crows, a position of great status in the organization, and commanded both wealth and power. They acquired young recruits, known as compradi, by purchasing them from various places such as brothels, in Zevran's case, or from shipwrecks in Taliesen's case. Interestingly, Arainai and the other Houses also took in the illegitimate children of Prince Estefan of Antiva, of which Rinnala was one. Recruits appear to take the surname Arainai upon being brought into the fold. The House trained the recruits in the traditional trials including pain endurance and gauntlets, sometimes even apprenticing the recruits together in units if their skills complemented each other well. Taliesen, Rinnala and Zevran were such a unit within House Arainai. During the time of Rinnala's arrival in 9:16, House Arainai had descended to Second Talon and Grandmaster Talav made an attempt at reclaiming Arainai's claim to First Talon, resulting in his execution. He was followed swiftly by Grandmaster Isidora, an ambitious if less capable leader of the House. She sent the assassins on any mission available before her death in 9:24 Dragon. Her death stripped the House of its power and it became one of the cuchillos (knives) and fell under the leadership of Master Eoman in 9:26. Eoman was as ambitious as the late Grandmaster Isidora had been and set out remove another House as Eighth Talon and thereby begin to restore House Arainai within the Crows, which was finally accomplished by 9:28 via a deal with House Valisti. Rinnala, the royal bastard, had aligned with the Rosso Noche (Red Night), a group that sought to establish her as the heir to King Natale. Valisti was Third Talon and eager that one of their own take the throne one day so they paid Eoman to eliminate Rinnala as competition. In exchange, House Arainai would ascend within the ranks. The Crows Zevran and Taliesen killed Rinnala in what they were told was a test of their loyalty to the Crows. Eoman, to his pleasure, became Grandmaster of the House. Following Zevran's successful bid for a contract to kill the future the Hero of Ferelden and Alistair, the only surviving Fereldan Grey Wardens following the Battle of Ostagar, and his subsequent failure to do so, Taliesen was sent to Ferelden by Eoman to find the errant Crow. Taliesen never returned to Antiva to report back and the chaotic nature of life during and after the Blight in Ferelden made it impossible to ever learn his true fate. Four months after the Blight ended, Grandmaster Eoman was murdered by a mysterious assassin, followed by the murders of both Grandmaster Runn and Grandmaster Availa, as well as other members of the House over the ensuing three years. The House, so recently risen in status, was thrown into obscurity following these deaths at the hands of a fellow Crow. The belief is that Zevran, known as the "Black Shadow" amongst the Antivan Crows, is the man responsible for slowly bringing the House to ruin with the aid of the cuchillos. Known members * Grandmaster Eoman Arainai (deceased) * Taliesen (deceased) * Zevran Arainai * Rinnala (deceased) * Guildmaster Talav (deceased) * Grandmaster Isidora (deceased) * Grandmaster Runn (deceased) * Grandmaster Availa (deceased) References Category:Antiva Category:Antivan Crows Category:Antivan nobility